A Cycle – 5^th Sunday of Lent 26

Rom. 8:8-11

Because they had an intimate relationship with Jesus Martha and Mary expected Jesus to respond to their plea for help.  They became increasingly desperate as one day turned into two and two into three. By the fourth day their expectations were shattered because Lazarus was dead and what they hoped for never happened.  They believed in the resurrection, but they wanted Lazarus to remain the man of their house. They expected Jesus to heal him as He did for so many strangers. 

Their need resonates with us because it is repeated each day by someone in this community.  We cry out to God and are hopeful that God will respond to our needs and our expectations.  Perhaps our expectations are tempered by our failure to live our lives as God desires. We are not certain God hears us or cares what we are going through.  What do we have to do to know God hears us and is responding to our need for His presence? Could it be we are ignoring the most important aspect of believing what Jesus always does is open the door of our hearts to the one thing that can change hope into a belief that trusts in God’s goodness. 

There is only one thing that can change us that way and that is the action of the Holy Spirit within us.  Do you believe God forgives all sin totally and completely? Forgiveness without demanding anything from us except to believe He will embrace us as He does all who trust in Him.  How do we do that when our faith formation has been based on conforming to rules, laws, norms of behavior and rituals?  There is only one way to do that and that is to trust in God’s promises to send the Spirit to change sus.    

That journey begins the moment we stand before Jesus and surrender.  Like Mary say, “let it be done to me according to your will.” More than one person in the scriptures began to understand the power of hope.  Both Martha and Mary said, “Lord if you had been here, he would not have died” but they still had hope. The truth was that four days was beyond hoping for the Jew’s believed the spirit left the body after three days.  Yes, they believed in the resurrection and that Lazarus would rise on the resurrection.  But the words of Jesus throughout all the scriptures tell us something else about believing in Him.  He is the promise of life, joy, peace, and a life filled with knowing God can turn disasters into triumph.  We are being told to believe even when the circumstances seem to be impossible to overcome.

Roll back the stone and you will see the glory of God.  What are the stones that each of us need to remove that prevent us from experiencing the glory of God?  What stone hides our failings, our pain, our doubts, our refusal to believe?  Are we all like Thomas whose faith depended on proof rather than faith?  What holds us back from believing despite the circumstances which keep us from forgiving ourselves.  What binds us and blinds us from allowing Jesus to call us to go forth and allow Him to embrace us?  Who are the people who have wounded us and destroyed all hope of you experiencing happiness?  Ezekiel in his prophecy reminds us God desires to have us to rise from our graves, that place where there is no hope.  Roll back the stone is the same message.  We are invited to respond.  We are not observers of a miracle we are being called to allow the miracle to happen to us. Hope never disappoints but we need to act on that hope.

It seems belief in God’s promises has been diminished by doubt. That is why we hold onto “forms of while denying the power of it” We practice our faith instead of living it because our righteousness is always diminished by our past and current sinfulness.  We seem to be unable to shed our past sins, and Paul describes that as living in the flesh. But he reminds us we are not in the flesh because the Spirit resides in our hearts.  Because of the Spirit we have the power to live in righteousness. 

We are trying to be acceptable to God which causes us to forget a simple spiritual truth – we belong to Christ.  We have been purchased by Christ. We need to give to God what is God’s and give to the world what belongs to the world. Easter is near, Lent is ending and it is time to stop looking at what we have done and acknowledge what Christ has done.

  Forgiveness is ours but it is a cloak we must put on otherwise feel the weight of our sins.  Jesus stands before you are offering you His body – acknowledge what is offered.  As you receive Christ today, release all those doubts you have about your worthiness and allow Christ to awaken in you to transforming power of forgiveness.  

Lord if only you had been here” is not a phrase we should ever use.  What we need to proclaim is Lord you are always with me, send your Spirit guides, open my eyes, and let me see.  Raise me from the dead and give me new life in the Spirit – amen.